Our account of the preservation of a
classic American organ all began in October of 1999 in
downtown Philadelphia at Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church, a
church that was officially founded in 1847. Douglas Tester,
organ consultant had invited me to visit and consider our
company’s participation in the work to be done on their 1937
Aeolian-Skinner organ. From the onset, there was a special
energy in our discussion and the more we talked, the more
stirring the vision of the project became. The challenge
was to carefully undertake a work to augment an instrument
of broad reputation, that is historically important, and
that has served as a centerpiece in the mission of Saint
Mark’s for sixty-three years. No question that the project
was on hallowed ground and it was clear from the beginning
that preservation of the organ was as crucial to Saint
Mark’s as augmentation. Our company accepted the challenge
and Saint Mark’s invitation to serve as a catalyst for the
project, and in doing so became a member of a wide spread
team of truly gifted and dedicated individuals.

The overall work plan covered five
principal sub areas: 1) Build a new console to replace the
1965 Austin console, 2) Restore the original Henry Vaughn
casework design of 1905, 3) Restore the Choir division to
it’s original 1937 specifications, 4) to put into service
five ranks of E.M. Skinner pipes purchased and stored by the
church since 1992, and 5) add a Grand Choeur division in the
west end of the church. Fortunately the stewards of Saint
Mark’s had been vigilant over the years in maintaining the
instrument to the highest degree. So with a composite work
plan, and a well-paved way, work on the project officially
began in January of 2000.

Douglas Tester, along with Ray Moderski, and Walter
Peterson, both parishioners of St. Mark’s, created original
specifications for additions to the organ. In the meantime,
in August of 2000, Scott Dettra arrived as the new organist
of St. Mark’s and Daniel Angerstein of Daniel Angerstein
Organ Works in Hendersonville, NC was commissioned to be the
tonal director for the project. The combined experience of
all involved was extraordinary as can be heard in the
distinctive tonal qualities of the new organ. Together, they
continued to further refine the specification and tonal
qualities as Daniel reviews in the next few paragraphs:

It has been said that G. Donald
Harrison tonal finished the Aeolian-Skinner Organ in 1937
from a seat in the Chancel with, presumably a person at the
loft console and a pipe assistant in the chamber. The
rationale for this was that the congregation was not as
involved with the music as we are today; and that the
balance for the choir of men and boys was more important.
Be that as it may, the organ of some 104 ranks was stuffed
into the side and attic of the chancel, and was quite in the
way of itself. For example, the Choir 16’ Viola is borrowed
to the Pedal. This borrow is actually an independent rank,
further inhibiting the organ’s egress. We believe that this
is true of the independent 8’ Viola as well.

In 1963, in an attempt to gain more
dynamic level from the organ to the room, the center tower
of the façade was torn out, along with a part of the
casework. This was part of a plan to “flowerbox” the Great
division. This dental declamatory had been allowed to
remain for some 40 years, while the flowerbox version never
appeared.

In the year 2000 a movement appeared which said, “We want an
organ which will fill our room!” The left over casework of
the 1930 Midmer-Losh organ in the rear of the room appeared
to be the answer. The Grand Choeur idea evolved into an
instrument of such proportions and sonorities to be capable
of pulling the sound from the front instrument while not
obliterating it.

A most forward-looking gentleman, Mr.
Wesley Parrott, procured some E. M Skinner stops from organs
in the area: 8’ Flauto Mirabilis, 8’ Flugel Horn, 8’
Cornopean, 16’ and 8’ English Horn and 8’ French Horn. He
purchased these many years ago and preserved them in the
basement of St. Mark’s Church. We lovingly took these and
incorporated them into the specification, along with other
new pipe work.

The 16’ & 8’ English Horn, and the 8’
Tuba, were added to become the new Solo Organ; the pipes
placed in the String division. This division has room to
house these pipes without getting in the way of the rest of
the organ. The Tuba is on 18” of wind, and the English Horn
on 10”, its original wind pressure. The English Horn had
been placed in the Choir on the original 4’ Zauberflote
toeboard. We made a copy of the 4’ Zauberflote located at
the Church of the Advent, Boston; an Aeolian-Skinner built
only a year earlier in 1936.

The new Tuba and Trompette en chamade
are from A. R. Schopp’s Sons, Inc., and are quite glorious.
The en chamade is placed under the west window, at a
15-degree angle.

The purpose of an antiphonal organ is
not only for antiphonal effects; it is also to draw out
sound from the front organ. In order to accomplish this
effectively, one must duplicate many sonorities that are
produced by the front instrument. This is why we included
sounds from strings to choruses, flute colors, to a 32’
Bombarde. It has been remarkably successful.

In designing the console, our company
deliberately considered the combined works of
Aeolian-Skinner with much attention being paid to the use of
materials and to the details of finishing work. Because of
their elevated degree of quality and concentration of detail
in recreating the Skinner tradition, Harris Precision
Products was selected to provide all of the mechanical
components for the console. Walker Technical Company
provided the combination action and solid state switching
system. While the addition of Walker components represent
the only real deviation from the original instrument, it
greatly enhances its reliability, consistency and utility.

The design for the Grand Choeur
casework was the inspiration of Davis D’Ambly, a parishioner
of St. Mark’s Church and a liturgical artist by trade. With
profound respect and appreciation for the ecclesiastical
Gothic surroundings in which the organ was to be placed,
Davis agreed to design and oversee the materials and
finishes of the organ. He spent many hours in session in the
rear stall of the choir studying Vaughn’s brilliant casework
in the front of the church. Amazingly, remaining pieces of
the Henry Vaughn casework were found in the basement of the
church. Mr. Richard W. Langnor of Philadelphia recreated
the original case in astonishing detail. The ultimate
effect of Davis’s artistic labor is a complement to the
existing artistry and craftsmanship found throughout the
church. St. Mark’s Church now has exceptional examples of
octagonal Gothic towers in the screen organ, rounded Gothic
towers in the main organ case and triangular Gothic towers
in the Grand Choeur casework. All are unique in their own
way but tied together beautifully within the church.

For many years, alabaster statues of
Sts. Peter and Paul had stood alone under the window in the
west end of the nave of the church. Louise Pezzi, a gifted
blacksmith in Philadelphia, was commissioned to design and
execute the elegant grillwork that now serves as a milieu to
the statues within the Grand Chouer casework.

The design also called for several hand carved wooden
elements. We were privileged to work with David Caldwell of
Caldwell Carvings in Lawndale, NC. The extensive and
exquisite carving work done on the organ from the pipe
shades to the linen folds and the lions to the cresting are
a testament to the complete dedication David has to his
vocation. He and Davis also worked together on the
polychroming and gilding of all the carvings.

John Dower of Regalia, Inc. in
Lincolnton, NC was delegated the responsibility of
developing working engineering drawings for the exterior and
interior of the organ. Laying out the new pipe work within
the extreme space limitations was a challenge that John
succeeded in accomplishing quite well. His firm then
developed the layouts for and constructed the wind chests to
be included in the organ.

In building the console and casework, our master woodworker,
George Zong and Eric Molenaar worked in conjunction with
Davis in selecting each piece of quarter sawn white oak
timber to be used in the organ. A majority of the wood
utilized on this project was harvested from the same stand
of trees that were located less than an hour from the
church. The continued focus of our work was on preserving
the artistic detail and quality of craftsmanship found
throughout St. Mark’s. Thomas Linder, our pipe maker, and
his apprentice, Brent Johnson, painstakingly worked to
reinstate the missing pipes from the main organ case. By
studying old photographs and measuring surviving pipes, they
were able to precisely match the originals. Marty Lemons
did delicate finishing work on the console and Grand Chouer
casework. Jim Twyne, the tonal director of Cornel Zimmer
Organ Builders, worked in close association with Daniel in
preparing all of the pipes in our factory before shipment to
the church. Judy Abernathy and Doug Jones of our electrical
department completed wiring and testing of the entire
instrument. Installing and rewiring the organ on site was
performed by most everyone noted in this article and many
more. A very particular thanks should go to the many
technicians at Walker Technical Company and to all the
volunteers of St. Mark’s Church.

The dedication service held on April 26, 2002, with an
immensely talented Scott Dettra at the console, marked the
completion of this exceptional project. It was a milestone
day, unforgettable to me as I listened to new planes of
music being performed on the classic organ, rich with the
old and new voices, beautifully vibrant and roused again.
All of the team’s talents and dedication on this project
came together beautifully. A revered organ had been made
hardy for a new day with all of its historic qualities
intact, ready, if you will, to become even more historic.

On behalf of all involved in this
project, I would like to observe that each and every member
of the project accomplished something unique and memorable,
and that the organ of Saint Mark’s is going to reflect our
good works for many years to come. At Cornel Zimmer Organ
Builders, we will always be proud to have been chosen to
participate in this work, and we express our most sincere
appreciation to Father Richard Alton and to all of the
parishioners of St. Mark’s Church. It was an extraordinary
experience, totally in keeping with mission of our company
which is to work together efficiently and productively to
create exquisite organs of the highest quality, durability
and dependability resulting in highly satisfied clients and
works of musical art that will contribute to the glory of
God for many generations to come.